Amp for polk/momo 12"

[malvarez]

I just got this 12" polk/momo sub with enclosure
http://www.polkmomo.com/mm12.php
I'm amp illiterate, what is the best amp value to run this sub?
I should be ok with a 300 Watt amp, right?
Is it possible to have an amp to drive the sub, installed with wires and all for $200 or less?
If not, which amps would you reccommend? I'm not looking for a lot of power but for good sound instead.
Thanks!

[MTXMAN]

no offense to polk but i would have gotten the sub w/o the enclosure (i've heard people complain about the enclosure having bad sound quality) but that asside it does look pretty sweet and while you might get better sq (sound quality) with a more standard enclosure design it's not a huge diff so you'll probably be completely happy with it :D

it's gonna be pretty hard to find a 300w amp of good quality for $200 let alone get it installed

here's some ebay auctions...

great Hifonics amp especially for under 100 bucks after shipping... normally goes for 350 will give you 220w rms bridged to a 2 ohm load

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=18796

this one's 460x1 for 137
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=39734

that's all i had time to look at before i run to my next class but i hope that helps...

The hifonics is a great amp especially for the money,
the main brands you'll want to look for since you're looking for quality with a decent price are alpine, kenwood, mtx (kinda dirty but more power and very durable), rockford fosgate, kicker. those are all the low priced amps that i can think of atm.

bty avoid sony, lanzar, legacy, pyle, profile, and other similar amps that have rediculously high power ratings for the cost. these brands are **** in a box... be sure to post here if you're not sure of a brand before you buy and we'll give you our advice :D:D

[PoweredByDodge]

you need bare ass minimum 400 for the momo 12 -- preferably 5 or 600.

mtx 8302 is on sale at www.crutchfield.com for $199 (half off).... that'll do 445 x 1

however u'll still need like an 8 gauge power line kit, remote turn on wire, and RCA cables... that's like 30 bucks for a lightning audio one from www.sounddomain.com

then u either do it yourself or pay some other person to.

profile california series new 2003 **** isn't bad -- profile's got like a 500 watt or 600w amp for like 140 bucks or 150 --- cuold jump on that.lol

[malvarez]

That MTX 8302 looks good and price it's not bad... will this be enough? It says on the website that it handles 300 watts RMS x 1 in bridged mode rather than 445 watts...

[malvarez]

...and what would better?
That MTX amp or the Kenwood seen here
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...&category=39734
thanks!

[malvarez]

fixed link
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...category=39734

[PoweredByDodge]

well lets compare the kenwood you picked versus the 8302...



THE KENWOOD
-------------------

POWER RATINGS

Bridged Power Output at 14.4V - 460 Watts x 1

Power Output at 4 Ohms, at 14.4V - 150 Watts x 2

AUDIO FEATURES

High-Pass Electronic Crossover: 150Hz, 12dB/oct (Switchable)

Variable Low-Pass Electronic Crossover: 50Hz - 200Hz, 18dB per

Bass Boost: Off/+12dB (90Hz)

Price = $120 with no warranty ... saving 80 bucks off retail sticker


THE MTX
-----------

Power 12.5 VDC Input
2 Ohm Load 150 w x 2
4 Ohm Load 75 w x 2
Bridged 4 Ohm Load 300 w

--POWER AT 14.4 VDC INPUT--
2 Ohm Load 212 w x 2
4 Ohm Load 120 w x 2
Bridged 4 Ohm Load 425 w

realistically coming out of the box - the mtx will have a birth sheet that will tell you exactly how much power it is doing per channel at 2 ohms. most 302's and 8302's were in the range of 190 to 210...some higher than that... lets say you got a midrange one at 200... 200 x 2 = 400... thats at 12.5 volts... 400 * 14.4 / 12.5 = 461 watts bridged at 4 ohms at 14.4 volts. whereas the kenwood might be a little overrated.

AUDIO FEATURES

variable high and low pass crossovers (its a dial so you can peg it anywhere you want, instead of a switch that has selectable options -- the dial is much preferable -- the kenwood has the switches).

18 DB dialable bass boost (again, the dial is preferable so you can pick if you want none of it, just a little, or all or whatever -- the kenwood has a simple "on or off" switch).

also it has built in compression circuitry to smooth out any inordinately high peaks and clips which might cycle through an amp... i shut mine off but some people may find it helpful.

Price = $199 with 3 year warranty... saving $150 if not more off retail sticker.


as far as the 300 x 1 thing -- thats a 12.5 volt rating, and its underrated at that... with the key off, your car is at 12.5 volts -- start the engine it's at 14.4 -- 99% of audio companies give power ratings at 14.4 or 13.8 volts... very few give them at 12.5... when u buy an mtx amp it'll come with a birth sheet that'll give you an actual bench test rating for your amp that you bought (not the model in general but the actual amp you buy) that tells you how much power it put out at 12.5 V at various impedances... so all you then have to do is multiply it by 14.4 and divide by 12.5 and it'll give you the power it should be doing at 14.4 volts give or take a smidge.

... 8302 will push a momo fine... could it take more power... ya... but its not gonna be a problem ... and for the price i doubt you'll find any better.

anywho -- that's my opinion.

[malvarez]

Thanks so much Dodge!
The MTX is looking better and better (a little bit more than what I wanted to spend originally tho)
Another question... how are pyramids and pioneer amps? Any good? or basically crap? I found those brands to be not expensive and they are well known brands in audio equipment... not sure how good they are in the amps field...

[Thom]

Originally posted by MTXMAN
no offense to polk but i would have gotten the sub w/o the enclosure (i've heard people complain about the enclosure having bad sound quality) but that asside it does look pretty sweet and while you might get better sq (sound quality) with a more standard enclosure design it's not a huge diff so you'll probably be completely happy with it :D

Who's complaining? It's a sealed enclosure of the exact volume we recommend for that sub. What box will sound better?

[malvarez]

This MTX 4250D at $129 seems to be a good deal...
will it handle the 12" sub?
http://www.sounddomain.com/sku/MTX4250D
Thanks!

How much better is the 8302 at $199?

[CodyS]

pbd will know more about mtx than me, but theyll probably do the same amount of power
since it has it listed at 350 @ 14.4v
so for $70 less, id take it, unless pbd knows something i dont about mtx's newer models
-Cody

[malvarez]

Thanks Cody!
Waiting on you PBD!!! ;-)
One more thing, besides the amp all I need is a 8 gauge wiring kit and I'm ready to have it installed somewhere right? that's all I need?

[PoweredByDodge]

the 4250D does about 350 watts at 14.4 volts AT 2 OHMS.


the 8302 does about 450+ at 14.4 volts and at 4 OHMS.


the momo 12 is a 4 ohm sub -- not a 2 ohm sub.. if u put hte momo 12 on the 4250D you would get only half the power the amp can put out.

so you'd get like 175 to the sub -- which is mega weak.

as far as what you would need -- i am assuming you have an aftermarket head unit -- as long as you do... jsut get this wiring kit -- i'm not partial to any brands of power cable.. its just that this will work for you and it is the cheapest one i've found... it has the RCA lines you need, the turn on wire, power and ground lines (8 gauge) as well as a fuse holder and all the terminals and ****...

http://www.sounddomain.com/sku/LITPK8IC

oh -- pioneer is decent -- pyramid is dog ****... pioneer isn't "high end" or even near it but they're reliable, decent, middle of the road stuff that doesn't tend to break down and has a good sound too it.. so i'm cool with pio -- always have been. pyramid is waste product.

[PoweredByDodge]

Originally posted by Thom
Who's complaining? It's a sealed enclosure of the exact volume we recommend for that sub. What box will sound better?

my sentiments exactly.

i'd vote for a thin black high grade rubber gasket between where the glass meets the wood, but that's just being nit-picky...

those boxes are pimp. expensive -- but pimp as hell.

[malvarez]

Thanks PBD!!!
I do have an after market HU, a JVC SH-909 on my Grand AM...
Your replies and comments are very clear and are helping me a lot with my decision... now I'm 90% convinced to go for the MTX 8203...
Once I order I will have to worry about where to have everything installed... I believe Circuit City installs it for $60... not sure what Best Buy charges...
if you had to choose, which one will you choose? how much more does a car stereo store actually charge?
Thanks again

[MTXMAN]

I'd go with Circuit city over best buy but i'd take an actual car audio store over either... I've worked in the Circuit City Roadshop and i know that we do things well but the emphasis is still on moving the product out quickly.. I've had friends who worked at the best buy car audio install bays and been told that they do ****ty work by people who work there... down side is that a lot of "good" car audio companies (if you value your merchandise don't go to some low end place that carries things like lanzar, plye, pyramid etc) can wind up costing you around $150... if you have a friend who does car audio (and does it right, none of that running the power wire down the door jam bull****) have him hook you up for a little spending cash and you can learn how to do it yourself while you're at it... or if you're near fort wayne IN i'll hook you up for $40... I need gas ;D

[malvarez]

Thanks again...
too bad I'm far from you, I'm in Atlanta... anyone here in Atlanta as well that could install the amp / sub for me?

One more thing, how does this US acoustics compare to the MTX 8302?

http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S...o&i=235USB2150

[Thom]

Originally posted by PoweredByDodge
my sentiments exactly.

i'd vote for a thin black high grade rubber gasket between where the glass meets the wood, but that's just being nit-picky...

There is a gasket between the wood and plexi.

[PoweredByDodge]

really thom??????? --- well then that's a good thing for two reasons.

1- cuz its 'sealed' sealed.
and
2- cuz i've played with like 10 of those boxes and to this day i've yet to actually NOTICE that gasket... looks just like its right on there all sleek lookin.

--------------------------------------------------

far as USacoustics -- they're respectable budget product --but they're not better than an mtx / rf / jbl / hifonics / etc etc... they're a step down.

----------------------------------------------------------

doing a single amp install is one of the easiest things in car audio.

since its not a huge amp - 8 gauge wire caan be used which is small and simple to work with... all that is involved in your install is running wire under the carpet to the battery - hook it to the battery... hook it to the amp -- run a short ground wire off the amp to the sheetmetal floor of the car... and run the RCA wires to the headunit -- you could do that in your sleep man... save your 60 bucks and do it yourself...

but if you must -- then i'd say circuit city if only cuz then you "know your demon" -- i fear 'custom shops' ... least when u go to CC u know its not perfect but it certainly isn't aweful either, and u can gte some sleep at night.

[malvarez]

ARGHHHH , now I found this Audiohban that looks really good!!!
http://ikesound.com/product-product_id/1514
(it says i'd need a 4 gauge kit tho)

whats the best option between these ones? (I'm sorry i'm being a pain in the butt but I'm learning on the fly, bear with me please)

- Audiobahn A8000T
- MTX 8302

I'm really illiterate with all this stuff that's why I dont wanna go ahead and try to do it myself, don't wanna take the risk of messing my car up :(
I was brave enough to install my after market HU at least ;-)

[CodyS]

http://ikesound.com/product-product_id/1462
dude, get that amp
its only $185...its better than the audiobahn...its rockfords "lower" series but its still a good amp...its one of the amps i was considering when i needed amps
if for some reason the link doesnt work its the rockford fosgate 501S or 500S...one of those
for wiring...look up www.knukonceptz.com
they have 4 awg kits you can buy and they are BY FAR the cheapest place for wiring...i havent looked at their kits...but their wiring is CHEAP
all my wiring is from there
cept my rca's
go to streetwires for your rca's
get like the 3.0s and youll be good
if you can install a head unit you can install an amp
its easier to install an amp...especially with a kit
and while youre installing we can help you out if you have any questions
its very simple
all you really need to remember is to have the fuse out of the fuse holder when installing
if i get my wiring anytime soon im getting an amp similar to that and i can take pics of the install and show them to you to give you a better idea
-Cody

[malvarez]

OK I think I'll give it a try an install it myself whenever I decide on the amp I'm gonna get.

The contenders are:
- Audiobahn A8000T
- Rockford Fosgate 501S
- MTX 8302

Decisions decisions... have no idea what factor to keep in mind to choose one of them, they are all in the same price range so that's not a factor....

[MTXMAN]

audiobahn sucks in my imho (and i believe that PBD agrees with me on this one) go with the MTX or the rockford, as my name suggests i'm an mtx fan ;D and i think the mtx is more power but don't quote me on that cause i'm going by memory and not looking at the specs on the fosgate.

oh yeah and tell us what car you have and we should be able to hook you up with more detailed install instructions :D:D

[sntnsupermen131]

agreed with mtx
but the rf is $15 less and puts out 150 more watts
than the mtx
the only thing is is that the mtx has a 3 yr warranty while the rf only has a 1 i believe
ive had one rf amp die on me a little after a year...but its my fault...i was pushing it too hard...and i still would take a rf over a mtx
-Cody

[malvarez]

Thanks Cody, MTX and PBD...
I made up my mind and will go for the rockford fosgate...
My car is a 99 Pontiac Grand AM SE, 4 door.
Will this kit be good enough?
http://www.knukonceptz.com/detail.asp?product_id=KOLAK4

I might keep bugging the hell outta you guys, esp when I receive the stuff and have everything ready to be installed.
I appreciate your patience!

[CodyS]

the only thing I can think of that you need is a smaller fuse...that one comes with an 80....im not sure but i think its a 50 amp fuse?
check with rockford
good choice...im not sure about knukonceptz's rca cables...but i dunno
im kind of picky with my patch cables(another word for rca's)
but it wont hurt to try
when you run your wiring...keep your power wires for your amps away from all other wires...speaker wires and any other car wires
and keep speaker wires away from any car wires and any power wires to your amp
this will (hopefully) keep any external noise from tapping into your wires
and if you have any questions...feel free to bug us :-)
$30 for a 4awg wiring kit is a steal...
and $185 for a 500 watt amp
-Cody

[CodyS]

oo and put your fuse holder within 18 inches of your battery...closer the better
and keep your fuse out of your fuse holder until the install is complete
-Cody

[malvarez]

Cody,
these are the specs for the amp
http://www.rockfordfosgate.com/ez2/M...h%20Amplifiers

I'm not sure what number to look to answer that fuse question you have...
and I read thru that site , it says Wire gauge - 8...
should i still get the 4 ga kit?

Thanks!

[MTXMAN]

I'f you're ever gonna want to go with a bigger amp/sub setup i'd say get the 4ga. If you're gonna keep that system as long as you're gonna keep the car you should be fine with the 8. also with 4 you can split it into multiple 8ga wires with a distrobution block. hence you could add another sub/amp with similar fuse rating or add a 4ch for your interior speakers. Personally i never use smaller than 4ga for power wire cause it's a bitch to have to uninstall and reinstall power wire when you coulda spent a few extra bills in the first place :D

[malvarez]

Ok, I just placed the 2 orders, for the amp and the wiring kit... I'm very excited!
Thanks to you guys for helping me make my decision... I hope I can figure out how to install this equipment.